On 1/02/2013 Wendy wrote:>Last time I saw one of those, it had drowned in the remains of a beer left>on the loungeroom floor overnight. I was a bit put off by the thought that>it had previously been living in my loungeroom.

I wonder how many beers your now deceased spider buddy had successfully pilfered before its untimely, alcohol fueled death....

Wendy, if you had only recognized the warning signs that your spider buddy was abusing alcohol, it might still be alive today.

On 30/01/2013 IdratherbeclimbingM9 wrote:>... There is another possibility, but I would need to see a close detail>pic to verify that it may be the male of the (common name) mouse-spider>species. The females are easily recognised by having a red head and generally>being a large spider, but the males are nondescript black and much smaller.>>Mouse-spiders are closely related to the Funnel web species and highly>venomous. They are known to be at Araps, and prefer leaf litter habitat>(can also be found in rocky areas and in trees!).>
I actually came across a female mouse spider at Felltimber and couldn't help but think how much it resembled a funnel web. Just how venomous are these little numbers (in case I see another one)?

On 1/02/2013 macey wrote:> I actually came across a female mouse spider at Felltimber and couldn't>help but think how much it resembled a funnel web. Just how venomous are>these little numbers (in case I see another one)?

Way up there. Think Funnelweb and you'll be close to the mark!

PS; I don't know if the antivenene appropriate for the Sydney Funnelweb, will work with the Mouse-spider...

Post edit:
I just looked up wikipedia, and it appears I have my memory info back the front.
The males have the red head, and Funnelweb antivenom apparently works for them.

Saw a male mouse spider in the carpark down at the Northern Group a few days ago. Mean looking little guys (body ~2cm). I didn't take a pic, but here's one I found online. Click it to go to the source page and some more info:

On 3/05/2013 Cool Hand Lock wrote:>I have had someone from Mitre tell me they saw one of these and another>one in Murtoa. >>Something strange going on in this area. As these have never been around>before.

Widewetandslippery and I saw one at Araps back in 2008*
(*The link provided at the time no longer seems to work...)

"The forest dwelling Eastern Mouse Spider appears to have a single, flap-like door and a shallow burrow with a side chamber. Unlike other species, this mouse spider has occasionally been reported living in large aggregations. Recently, almost 300 specimens were collected from the backyard of a house on the central coast of New South Wales after flooding rains drove the animals from their burrows."